Month: December 2015

21 Reasons Rats Rock

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21 Reasons Rats Rock

  1. Rats are super cute, we particularly like ‘Dumbo’ rats, and the babies are far cuter than we ever imagined.
  2. rats are super clever– the kiddiewinks can’t wait to train them to do tricks, they have spent a good hour making an obstacle course out of Lego.
  3. rats are super friendly if handled regularly in the first few weeks of life, these six week olds were super cuddly when we got them
  4. rats come in so many differs colours, and markings; I could have been tempted by lots
  5. Rats are said to be as ‘companionable‘ as dogs
  6. rats need human interaction- this is a huge reason to love them, they thrive on attention and interaction, with humans and other rats
  7. Rats are one of the cleanest pets you could own. They self groom constantly and can even be litter trained.
  8. Rats don’t shed fur, so if running on clothes, carpets and sofas there is no need to clear up hair and fur from anything!
  9. Rats eat anything, they aren’t picky at all.
  10. Rats don’t smell, they clean themselves regularly and are as clean as they can. Very little mess out of the cage ( so far, so good, but it is early days
  11. Rats bond and learn to really love and respond to their owners; just prepare your kiddiewinks for the fact that they will usually live for 2-3 years only! Focus on making its short life amazing.
  12. Rats can learn to live with other pets in the home… (Sometimes). Just hope our two cats end up loving them, so far so good, they have shown no interest in the rat scent whatsoever!
  13. rats respond to their name– Chase does it already,according to the eldest kiddiewink, apparently he is a natural!
  14. Rats love being on shoulders– this is a big reason to love them according to kiddiewink 2
  15. Rats have personalities– already one is cheeky, one cuddly and one confidently chilled

Post hijacked by eldest two kiddiewinks, they are now giving me their reasons and want me to type them for the post.

16. They curl up and cuddle on your arms.

17. They cheer us up when we cry

18. They tickle us when they are on our neck and shoulder

19.They are soft and cuddly

20. They can do tricks and we can make stuff for them to go on

21.The happier they are, the longer they will live

Rats really are the perfect family pet!

 

 

 

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20 signs Christmas is Coming

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On the twentieth day of advent my kiddiewinks brought to me…

20 signs Christmas is coming

19 people to buy for

Temperature and Tonsilitis

  1. nativity cribs- I love cribs, yet annoyingly we still don’t have one. There are so many different ones, a lot of places we have been have material or wool ones. The church, in the village where we recently moved, has a travelling crib and we were lucky enough to get it for a few nights before it traveled to the next family.image
  2. school nativities- these mere mentioned previously, but they definitely are the start of Christmas for some people
  3. Panics over christmas cards-I always plan to be organised but it never happens! I buy them early, I sometimes write them early, but I never post the, early, resulting in paying 1st class, not sending or dropping off on Christmas morning. Every year, I find a few cards from previous years, that I never posted, we can tell by the number of kiddiewinks which are included.
  4. Christmas trees twinkling
  5. holly berriesimage
  6. robins in the garden- we have lots of bird feeders in the a garden and have seen lots of birds in the last few weeks, including robins.image
  7. houses a glow- some amazing lights on houses these days. A house near us decorates theirs for charity- it is awesome!image
  8. food, food and more food.
  9. chocolate-
  10. drinks- surprisingly our local Aldi hasn’t run out of prosecco yet, apparently they were sent a monster Christmas delivery to cope with our town’s consumption
  11. friends and family- chance to hopefully get some time of work together; to socialise or chill.
  12. presents- this goes without saying,image
  13. Christmas parties  and get together (usually for the kiddiewinks, not us)
  14. It is acceptable to snuggle on the sofa, watching films, in the afternoon
  15. Bank account is dwindling ( or well and truly empty)
  16. Colds and coughs are everywhere
  17. newspapers, websites, facebook all speculate about a white Christmas.
  18. glitter, glitter everywhere, it is bloody everywhere! From Christmas cards, to crafts, to baubles, to glittery tinsel. The carpets and floors always look sparkly and messy!
  19. christingle services- these are lovely and the song ‘Sing Christingle’ is always stuck in my head long after the event
  20. christmas songs are everywhere- namely the radio and my son, who cannot stop singing them. He loves them all.

19 was rather tricky…

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On the nineteenth day of advert my kiddiewinks brought to me

19 people to buy for

tonsilitis and a temperature

18 minutes of sex ed…

…And a tantrum about the Christmas tree.

I really struggled to think of something for 19 my steam has run out, but it turns out

auntie x3, uncles x2 cousins x3, grandparents x3, our family of 5, lovely childminder, teachers x2- boom there you have 19!

Temperature, tears and Tonsilitis

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On the eighteenth day of advent, my kiddiewinks brought to me..

Tonsilitis and temperature

17minutes of sex ed

16 tiny paws…

…And a tantrum about the Christmas tree.

Long story short, two poorly children, one poorly hubby,  two whiny, clingy children, two temperatures and not much sleep had by most of us. None of it helped by a stubborn little man who hates medicine and in the end had to be force given nurofen in order to get his temperature down.

 

Peanut versus widgy

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On the seventeenth day of advent, my kiddiewinks brought to me

17 minutes of sex ed

16 tiny paws

15 pounds spend on ratties……

…..And a tantrum about the Christmas tree.

Well, had a car journey with the kiddiewinks I never expected. My eldest started jovially calling her brother a peanut head. I made the mistake of asking what she meant and she said, “proper name for widgy mummy” as if I was stupid! I explained it was a penis, to which she started calling him ‘penis head’. Little man, never to be left out, then asked “what are woman’s bits were called properly then”, as soon as he told him vagina, he paused for a minute, repeated it under is breath and then retrogressive “haha Well you are just a big vagina”. We had a giggle, and then I reminded him he was not to use these words like that, particularly at school. Again he paused, before stating “but I must be able to tell my friends what it means they need to know the proper words too”. Hmmmm, a very amusing car journey and certainly passed the time to the supermarket.

New best friends

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On the sixteenth day of advent, my kiddiewinks brought to me

16 tiny paw prints

15 pounds spent on ratties

14 rocks in a rucksack

13 is unlucky for daddy

12 days of Christmas

11 christmas carols

10 moments peace

9 Christmas cuddles

8 Christmas smiles

7 advent calendars

6 ways to Christmas calm

5 Christmas lists

4 early mornings

3 spectacled reindeer

2 toilet decorations

And a tantrum about the Christmas tree.

Our family now consists of two fish tanks, 2 cats and 3 rats, hence the 16 tiny paws. Both big kiddiewinks have got a it of stick about our pet choice but they don’t care. They have told everyone what a friendly pet they are and. Even the teachers have fought their corner. Dumbo rats are tame, fun and friendly by nature, as long as they get plenty of handling in The first few weeks of their life. All our research said to find a breeder, and by chance the perfect advert was opted in pets4homes- stating all babies Had been handled and were used to small children, perfect! Not only that, they got to choose the ones they wanted, the two became three, when mummy fell in love with one we were going to have to leave behind! We were all surprised by how cute, cuddly and friendly they already were. Three distinct personalities are already coming through.

Rubble- is little mans rat and he is an absolute nutter

 chase- is eldest kiddiewinks, and already likes to be chased before being held, he has a cool racing stripe on his back

 rocky -is just a cuddler and loves getting comfy on me or the hubby.

 These new additions are going to be very loved, and I know they will easily get the recommended hour a day of handling. Kiddiewinks are already keen to make an obstacle course…last night little lady came running downstairs excitedly

“Mummy, chase can already come to his name the cleve fellow, he is a natural” hubby and I were in fits of giggles.

There are some amazing videos on you tube, showing how cool rats are click here for rat tricks 

Useful websites for advice and Info about the cuties
http://www.rat-care.com

http://www.quite.co.uk/rats/

Baby dumbo Rats…

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On the fifteenth day of advent my kiddiewinks brought me

15 pounds spent on ratties

14 rocks in a rucksack

13 is unlucky for daddy

12 days of Christmas

11 christmas carols

10 moments peace

9 Christmas cuddles

8 Christmas smiles

7 advent calendars

6 ways to Christmas calm

5 Christmas lists

4 early mornings

3 spectacled reindeer

2 toilet decorations

And a tantrum about the Christmas tree.

Yey we have bought three rats (£5 a rat) baby dumbo rats and they are super cute! More information about rats on day 16.

   
    
    
 

Rocks in the bag!

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On the fourteenth day of advent my kiddiewinks brought to me

14 rocks in a rucksack

13 is unlucky for daddy 

12 days of Christmas 

11 Christmas carols

10 moments of peace

9 Christmas cuddles

8 Christmas smiles

7 advent calendars

6 ways to Christmas calm

5 Christmas lists
4 early mornings

3 spectacled reindeer
2 toilet decorations
And a tantrum about the Christmas tree.

I emptied little man’s school rucksack tonight, and he has been carrying 14 rocks around with him. When asked why? He explained he loved them as they were part of his collection! I have no words! 

 

Unlucky daddy

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On the thirteenth day of advent my kiddiewinks brought to me

13 is unlucky for daddy

12 days of Christmas

11 christmas carols

10 moments peace
9 Christmas cuddles

8 Christmas smiles

7 advent calendars

6 ways to Christmas calm

5 Christmas lists
4 early mornings

3 spectacled reindeer
2 toilet decorations

And a tantrum about the Christmas tree.

Well, the kiddiewinks were sent money to school to buy me and daddy Christmas presents, eldest was on mummy duty, little man was on daddy duty… He ran out of school proudly telling me he had got daddy two presents, peeking in the back I could see three. He replied, I bought myself one too, look! Such a character, it had me roaring! His sister was pretty incensed and felt daddy was unlucky to have got little man in charge of buying his presents!

 

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On the twelfth day of advent my kiddiewinks brought to me

12 days of Christmas

11 christmas carols
10 moments peace
9 Christmas cuddles
8 Christmas smiles

7 advent calendars
6 ways to Christmas calm
5 Christmas lists
4 early mornings
3 spectacled reindeer
2 toilet decorations

And a tantrum about a Christmas tree.

Quite simply the kiddiewinks love the twelve days of Christmas song, trying to remember the order and speeding up the pace. Drives daddy bonkers!